Multiple runnered steerable ski sled



Jan. 10, 1967 TSUGIO OGATA MULTIPLE HUNNERED STEERABLE SKI SLED 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 2. 1965 INVENTOR 4 7-7-0 R NEYS Jan. 10, 1967 TSUGIO OGATA I 3,297,335

MULTIPLE RUNNERED STEERABLE SKI SLED Filed Feb. 2. 1965 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 J j I 7.

, "IIIIIIIIII zz' w INVENTOF Jan. 10, 1967 TSUGIO OGATA 3,297,335

MULTIPLE RUNNERED STEERABLE SKI SLED Filed Feb. 2. 196 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR fmz United States Patent 3,297,335 MULTIPLE RUNNERED STEERABLE SKI SLED Tsugio Ogata, Tokyo, Japan, assignor to Kabushiki Kaisha Tokyo Gurafikku Dezainazu, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan Filed Feb. 2, 1965, Ser. No. 429,761 Claims priority, appligation Japan, Nov. 28, 1964, 3 30 1 Claim. oi. 28016) tegrally connected together at the upper surfaces thereof by a seat frame, resiliently supporting a seat, the seat frame is provided with a supporting frame projecting forwardly therefrom. With a handle rod which extends almost vertically of the supporting frame and is supported rotatably by the same and which handle rod is provided at its front lower end with a steering plate disposed between the pair of runners and at its upper end with a handle.

One embodying example of the present invention will be explained with reference to the accompanying drawmgs.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the present sled when adjusted for being used,

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the sled,

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal view taken along the line IIIIH in FIG. 2,

FIG. 4 is an enlarged longitudinal view of a portion of the steering elements of the sled,

FIG. 5 is a side view partly in section of the elements of FIG. 4 with the steering rod being folded,

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI in FIG. 4,

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VIIVII in FIG. 4,

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VIII-VIII in FIG. 4,

FIG. 9 is a side view of a portion of the sled showing the device, therefore, for braking purposes,

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XX in FIG. 9,

FIG. 11 is a side view showing one manner of using the sled, and

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the sled ready for storing.

Referring now more particularly to the accompanying drawings wherein like and corresponding parts are designated by similar reference characters, numerals 1 and 1' denote a pair of parallel runners made of wood or synthetic resin and curved upwardly at their front end portions thereof. To the upper surfaces 1a and 1b of the rear portions of said runners and along their longitudinal directions are attached brackets 1c and 1d fixedly mounted by screws, rivets or the like 1e and 1) to said runners. Side rods 4 and 4' of a seat frame 3 formed by a U-shaped end portion of a metallic tube 2 having a reverse bend are attached by said brackets to said runners for being fixedly combined therewith. A crossbar 3a connects said side rods 4 and 4'. A seat plate 5 is attached to the upper surface of the seat frame 3 and cross-bar 3a. Both front terminal ends 6 and 6' of the curved metallic tube 2 are extended to project forwardly from seat 5 parallel with runners 1 and 1 with a space 7 therebetween, and are connected one with the other by a connecting member 8 connected thereto by screws, rivets or the like 8a. The front ends 6 and 6 of the metallic tube 2 are further extended and curved laterally at nearly right angles to form a pair of footholds 9 and 9' on which are mounted circular tubes 10 and 10 made of elastic materials such as rubber.

Tube 11 extends through the space 7 between the supporting frame ends 6 and 6 with tube 11 being slightly inclined rearwardly, and the same is attached to the supporting frame ends 6 and 6' as to be slidable forwardly and rearwardly along said supporting frame by a pair of upper and lower holding plates 12 and 13 respectively projecting rearwardly tube 11. Said holding plates slidably embrace the upper and lower sides of said frame ends 6 and 6' as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6. A pair of V-shaped locking members 16 and 16 are pivotally supported by an axle 15 extending through and between a pair of bearing members 14 and 14' projecting downwardly from the lower holding plate 13 and said locking members are urged away one from another by a coil spring 17 and are provided with respective locking pins 18 and 18 projecting outwardly from their surfaces facing the supporting frame ends 6 and 6'. Said pins 18 and 18 can engage any one of a series of holes 19 and 19' provided in the frame ends 6 and 6 their longitudinal direction, whereby the tube 11 is retained at that position so as not to be further slidable. If the pair of locking members 16 and 16 are pinched against the spring 17 to be closedQthe engaging pins 18 and 18 are disengaged out of the holes 19 and 19, whereby the tube 11 can then slide freely along the supporting frame ends 6 and 6.

As shown in FIG. 4, there is provided a handle rod 20 rotatably extending through the tube 11, and a steering runner 21 which is substantially equal in form to the front end portion of the runner 1 and is connected through metallic fittings 22 connected to its upper surface by bolts 21; by an axle 23 to the front end of the handle rod 20. Said steering runner 21 and the rod 20 are pulled towards one another by a spring 24 positioned at the rear side of the axle 23 so that the front end of the steering runner 21 is pivoted to a position with its tip end pointed downwardly.

Rod 26 of a T-shaped handle bar 25 is pivotally connected to the top end of the handle rod 20 by an axle 27 so that they can be mutually folded. A coupling tube 28 is slidably mounted on the lower portion of the rod 26 and is in threaded engagement with thread 29 on the top portion of the tube 11. If the front end of the coupling tube 28 is unscrewed and moved from the handle rod 20, the rod 26 can be pivoted laterally of the handle rod 20, as shown in FIG. 5. This is convenient for folding the device as shown in FIG. 12.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 8, the tube 11 is provided at opposite sides of the lower portion thereof with a pair of slots 30 and 30. A pair of projections 31 and 31' project within said slots from opposite sides of the handle rod 20, so that when the handle rod 20 is turned against the tube 11 for steering, the turning range thereof is limited to a certain extent.

As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the supporting frame ends 6 and 6' are provided between the tube 11 and seat 5 with a pair of holding plates 33 and 34 which embrace the metallic tube 2 from the upper and lower sides and are tightly fastened integrally by a butterfly nut and screw 35, so that when fastened together they are fixed so as not to be slidable forwardly and rearwardly due to pins 32 and 32' which extend into the holes 19a and 19a in the metallic tube 2. There is provided a braking rod 38 which is pivotally supported,

by a pin 37 extending through a pair of bearing members 36 and 36' projecting downwardly from the lower surface of the lower side holding plate 34. The braking rod 38 is provided at the rear end thereof with a downwardly extending braking plate 39 projecting therefrom and a spring 40 connected thereto and to plate 40a held by bolt 40b to tube 2, tends to hold said brake upwardly. If handle 41 of the front end of the brake rod 38 is pulled upwardly against the spring 40, the braking plate 39 is forced to project toward the surface of snow or of the earth for providing a braking effect. This brake rod can be easily removed from the supporting frame 6 by unscrewing the butterfly nut 35 fastening the holding plates 33 and 34 and accordingly, the same is convenient for storing.

The device of the present invention is used in such a manner that, as shown in FIG. 11, a person is seated on the seat plate with his feet placed on the footholds 9 and 9' and grasps the steering handle bars 25 in a position convenient for handling the same. Thereupon, the sled will slide over the snow or the like by means of its runners 1 and 1 while being steered with runner 21. As the steering runner 21 is pulled at the rear portion thereof upwardly by the spring 24, its front end or tip portion runs into the snow, so that by turning the same by the handle bar 25 runner 21 causes a resistance against the forward movement of the sled, effecting a steering action. The attaching position of the handle rod to the supporting frame ends 6 and 6' can be easily adjusted by engaging the pins 18 and 18' of the locking member 16 and 16' attached to the rod 20 in any of the holes 19 arranged on said supporting frame ends. The turning range of the handle rod 20 is controlled'by the projections 31 and 31' being limited within the turning range within the slots 30 and 30' in the tube 31 whereby there is prevented an excessive turning of the steering runner 21. v

The braking plate 39 is detachable in relation to the supporting frame ends 6 and 6 by means of the pair of holding plates 33 and 34 and the butterfly nut 35. When the sled is to be used, the tube 11 for the handle is fixed at the front portion of the supporting frame ends 6 and 6 and the braking plate is attached at the rear side thereof. When the sled is to be stored or carried, the braking plate 21 is removed from the supporting frame 39 and the tube 11 is slid to the rear portion of the supporting frame ends 6 and 6' for retracting the steering runner 21 between the runners 1 and 1' and the handle rod 25 is pivoted against the handle rod 20. Thus, the sled can be made extremely small for storing or carrying.

The present device is capable of considerable modification and such changes thereto as come within the scope of the appended claim is deemed to be a part of the invention.

I claim:

A ski sled comprising a pair of similar runners, a tubular frame having a U-shaped rear end portion having a reverse bend, a laterally extending medial portion and spaced apart longitudinally extending front end portions, a seat for the user being fixedly mounted on said rear end and front end portions of said frame, a steering rod extending laterally between said frame front end portions, means rotatably supporting said steering rod, a steering runner pivotally connected to said steering rod, resilient means tending to retain said steering runner slanting from said steering rod, a pair of plates fixedly attached to said steering rod supporting means and slidably embracing said frame front end portions, a pair of pin carrying members pivotally connected to said plates, said frame front end portions each having a series of holes therein and resilient means tending to pivot said pin carrying members each with their pin detachably inserted in one hole of the series of holes in each of said frame front end portionsdetachably retaining said plates at a desired position on said frame front end portions.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,312,703 8/1919 Mattson 287-98 X 1,462,889 7/1923 Slater 280-16 1,968,975 8/1934 Upsaker et al. 280-16 2,633,365 3/1953 Cwynar et' al. 280-16 2,711,326 6/1955 Sorensen 280-16 3,147,019 9/1964 Van Tress et al. 28016 BENJAMIN HERSH, Primary Examiner.

M. S. SALES, Assistant Examiner. 

